This invention relates generally to methods for producing glass-to-metal seals and more specifically to such seals produced by shrink-fit compression which are adaptable to aerospace applications where space and weight are primary limitations as are cleanliness, simplicity of construction, and superiority of seal performance.
Shrink-fit compression seals have been developed and used successfully by others in operations involving glass-to-metal seals. These were primarily large diameter seals wherein a metal compressed on ring worked against a soft sealing material to form a seal with the glass. Obviously, if the necessity of the soft sealing material could be eliminated, a lighter, smaller seal, having inherent advantages with respect to aerospace application, would be produced. There is therefore a definite need in the art for a method which will produce a superior glass-to-metal seal and which eliminates the use of a third medium as a binder.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a glass-to-metal seal method using no other material in the seal.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method for producing glass-to-metal seals which are clean yet does not compromise the cleanliness of surrounding parts and structures.
An additional object of the present invention is to provide a method which produces glass-to-metal seals of superior leak resistance.